The Mount Sinai School of Medicine (MSSM) proposes to continue and expand a highly successful training program in Cellular and Molecular Biology (CMB) for predoctoral fellows. This program reflects an expansion of CMB relevant research at MSSM, which has experienced a large growth in NIH funding over the past 14 years. The training program reflects an integral component of the institution's Graduate Program, in which training mentors play key leadership roles. The program encompasses a laboratory-based, multidisciplinary predoctoral training in cellular and molecular biology. The current grant supports four predoctoral trainees. The program has demonstrated the ability to attract and develop a cadre of outstanding PhD and MD/PhD students in cellular and molecular biology focused research and attracts an increasing number of students to the laboratories of the CMB training faculty to conduct their predoctoral thesis research. The new establishment of the Stem Cell Institute at MSSM provides further strength to this training grant. The additional component would include 2 predoctoral fellows to be added over the course of the first 2-3 years of the new funding period. The training faculty consists of 50 preceptors from across several departments. All training faculty have peer-reviewed support from NIH and/or other extramural agencies. The curriculum for the predoctoral trainees involves some core elements including advanced course work in developmental, cellular, and molecular biology with focus on stem cell biology, organismal development, and cancer cell biology, as well as related structural studies. The training program includes a rigorous evaluation and selection process for trainees, and "the program is both cognizant of and actively involved in minority recruitment. The CMB training program combines cutting edge research with a high standard academic curriculum, and many interfaces with the clinical side to highlight the relevance of the basic research training to medical applications. The trainees will work closely with faculty drawn from throughout Mount Sinai and ensuring that the trainees'research is both comprehensive in scope and broad to cover all relevant areas of modern Cellular Biology research.